Pinoy Street Food 101: Dried Squid (Barbecue)

Pinoys are so crazy about street food or even just food, in general.  Maybe it comes with the hospitality trait that Pinoys are known for.  Visit a friend's house and the first thing they ask you is, "Have you eaten?"  We also like to feed others, whether it's a small meal or a grand meal, it is a big deal for us Pinoys.

If you walk down the streets of Manila or other towns in the Philippines, you will notice different kinds of street foods.  There might be similarities of  street foods from town to town but there are unique ones too.  I will try to compile the most common street foods as well as the unique ones, as I will most likely see one or two,  in my walks and travels. 

 

I saw a lady selling this in one of the streets of Binondo.   It's really simple to do, just skewer a piece of dried squid through a barbecue stick and cook over charcoal.  Just mind that you do not overcook the squid and make it rubbery.  It's always good to cook seafood moderately or medium rare and let the sauce or dip enhance the taste.   Squid barbecue is often dipped in 'spicy vinegar' or 'suka with sili' (vinegar with tiny red pepper). I can not personally say whether it is a popular street food or not as dried squid is kind of heavy on the pocket, however dried squid is very tasty and filling. 

Dried squid is plentiful in the Philippines.  Being an archipelago surrounded with seawater, naturally, fishing is one of the major industry and among the best catches in the Philippine seas are squids. Some of the good sources of dried fish in the Philippines are coastal towns in the Visayan area, such as Cebu.